Two Dead as Massive Wildfire Rages in Cyprus
Two Dead as Massive Wildfire Rages in Cyprus
Two people were killed and hundreds evacuated as a massive wildfire tore through southern Cyprus, destroying homes and threatening communities amid an intense heatwave.
Firefighters struggled to contain the blaze after it erupted in mountainous terrain north of the southern city of Limassol midday Wednesday, driven by strong winds and searing temperatures.
Overnight, two people were found dead in a burned-out vehicle, while authorities continued to struggle to evacuate people trapped in the village of Lofou, about 26 kilometers (16 miles) from Limassol.
“The situation is very difficult and the fire front is huge. All forces have been mobilized,” Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides told reporters from the scene earlier.
Cyprus has requested help through the European Union’s civil protection mechanism, with Spain expected to send two aircraft on Thursday, government spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis said. Jordan has also pledged assistance.
The fire began in the village of Malia on Wednesday afternoon and has now spread to at least ten nearby villages. Firefighting aircraft were expected to be redeployed at first light after darkness forced a pause. Homes were burning in the Souni-Zanakia communities early Thursday, the fire brigade said.
Cyprus’ electrical grid is at breaking point due to wildfire
Meanwhile, the fire has also impacted Cyprus’ electrical grid, with electricity authority (EAC) spokeswoman Christina Papadopoulou telling CyBC radio on Thursday morning that as much as 15 per cent of the grid may have been damaged. “The damage is enormous,” she said, saying crews on the ground had borne witness to “burnt cables and pylons.”
She added that it is “very difficult” to assess the damage at this stage but that it had been confirmed that a substation in the area had been completely destroyed by the fire. As of dawn on Thursday, a total of fifteen villages remained without electricity, while part of the Limassol suburb of Ypsonas also had no power.
Temperatures on the island reached 43 degrees Centigrade (109.4 Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, triggering an amber weather alert. Conditions are expected to worsen Thursday, with highs forecast to hit 44 degrees—the hottest day of the year so far. Cyprus has struggled with a protracted drought, pushing scarce water resources to critically low levels. The affected area sits just north of Cyprus’s Kouris reservoir, the island’s largest. It was at just 15.5 percent of its capacity on Wednesday.
This is one of the most destructive fires to ever hit Cyprus. In 2021, a wildfire that burned for two days through several mountain villages killed four people and destroyed homes. The wildfire at the Troodos mountain range burned 55 square kilometers (21 square miles) of forest and farmland. Officials reported that more than fifty homes had been destroyed. Strong winds quickly spread the flames, forcing the evacuation of at least eight mountain villages.